Merrimac railway station
Merrimac | |||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
.jpg) Digital illustration of Merrimac railway station | |||||||||||
| General information | |||||||||||
| Location | Gooding Drive, Merrimac | ||||||||||
| Coordinates | 28°02′56″S 153°21′47″E / 28.049°S 153.363°E | ||||||||||
| Owner | Queensland Rail | ||||||||||
| Operator | Queensland Rail | ||||||||||
| Line | Gold Coast | ||||||||||
| Distance | 82.4 km | ||||||||||
| Platforms | 2 (2 side) | ||||||||||
| Tracks | 2 | ||||||||||
| Construction | |||||||||||
Structure type | Ground | ||||||||||
Platform levels | 1 | ||||||||||
| Parking | 275 | ||||||||||
Cycle facilities | 40 spaces | ||||||||||
| Accessible | yes | ||||||||||
| Other information | |||||||||||
| Status | Under construction | ||||||||||
| Fare zone | Zone 5 | ||||||||||
| History | |||||||||||
| Opening | After mid-2026 (planned)[1] | ||||||||||
| Services | |||||||||||
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Merrimac is an under-construction railway station operated by Queensland Rail on the Gold Coast line. It is scheduled to open after mid-2026 and will serve the Gold Coast suburbs of Merrimac, Worongary and Carrara. It will be a ground level station, featuring two side platforms.
History
The Gold Coast railway line opened in stages from 1996 - 2009. During its construction, provisions were made for a future station at Merrimac however due to low development in the area, the station was never built. In November 2017, the Queensland Government committed to building three new in-fill stations on the Gold Coast Line as part of the AU$5.4 billion Cross River Rail project—Pimpama, Hope Island and Merrimac.[2] It is currently anticipated that more than 2,000 passengers will use Merrimac station per day when it becomes operational.[3] The station is expected to cost up to $40 million to construct,[2] and is planned to be open in 2026, in time for the commencement of services on the new Cross River Rail line.[4]
The planned location for Merrimac station is off Gooding Drive, about 750 m (2500 ft) east of the Pacific Motorway interchange.[3] The station will be integrated with other modes of public transport, and is planned to feature connections with pedestrian and bicycle paths. The station concept design currently includes space for 278 car park bays.[4]
After the preliminary concept design details of Merrimac station were revealed by the Queensland Government in October 2019, City of Gold Coast councillor Glenn Tozer expressed concern over the station's planned location.[5] He noted that road congestion in the station's proposed area was already an issue due to local school traffic and the lane merge at the Pacific Motorway interchange. Tozer suggested an alternative location for the station about 1.6 km (1.0 mi) further north, off Elysium Road in the neighbouring suburb of Carrara. He claimed that this location would be ideal due to its proximity to an existing industrial precinct and the planned $1 billion Pacific View Estate major residential development.[5][6]
Platforms and services
| Merrimac platform arrangement | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Platform | Line | Destination | Notes |
| 1 | Gold Coast | Varsity Lakes | |
| 2 | Gold Coast | Roma Street (to Airport line) | |
References
- ↑ "Merrimac station". Cross River Rail. Archived from the original on 30 May 2026. Retrieved 30 May 2026.
Major construction for Merrimac station is expected to be complete in 2026 and will be followed by a testing and commissioning phase. Specific timing for the introduction of the station into the existing network will be decided in conjunction with Queensland Rail and Translink and has not yet been determined.
- 1 2 McCosker, Ruth (17 November 2017). "Labor all aboard for three new rail stations but Cross River Rail comes first". Brisbane Times. Nine Entertainment Co. Archived from the original on 14 October 2019. Retrieved 14 October 2019.
- 1 2 StClair, Monique (9 October 2019). "Two new rail station locations for the Gold Coast". myGC.com.au. Archived from the original on 14 October 2019. Retrieved 14 October 2019.
- 1 2 "Merrimac: New Gold Coast station" (PDF). Cross River Rail. 9 October 2019. Archived (PDF) from the original on 14 October 2019. Retrieved 14 October 2019.
- 1 2 StClair, Monique (15 October 2019). "Proposed Gold Coast train station 'just not enough' for local councillor". myGC.com.au. Archived from the original on 15 October 2019. Retrieved 15 October 2019.
- ↑ "State Government approves Pacific View Estate at Worongary for 10,000 residents in 3500 homes". Gold Coast Bulletin. News Corp Australia. 21 March 2015. Archived from the original on 15 October 2019. Retrieved 15 October 2019.